Politics
By Anthony Isibor
THE International Coalition against Christian Genocide in Nigeria, ICAC-GEN, has commended the Catholic Bishops Conference of Nigeria, CBCN, for their resolute stand on the current provocative political, economic and security situation in Nigeria as contained in their February 2024 Conference recently held in Abuja.
In a statement signed by its President, Nwankwo T. Nwaezeigwe, the group stated that it was particularly heartened by the section of their communiqué on insecurity, which states inter alia:
“Unarmed citizens are brutally slaughtered on our highways, in their homes, and even in the sacred precincts of places of worship. Killer herdsmen, bandits, and unknown gunmen seem to be on the rampage. Many communities across the nation have been taken over completely by criminals.
“Families have lost their ancestral lands to armed invaders and land-grabbers. The social and economic lives of communities have been paralysed due to insecurity. Schools have been shut down, and children can no longer continue their education.
“Farmers are unable to access their farms out of fear of either losing their lives or being kidnapped.”
In a similar vein, the group commended the Catholic Ecclesiastical Provinces of Ibadan and Lagos for coming out boldly to express their utter revulsion against the current spiraling state of political precipice in Nigeria in their last respective conferences.
In their communiqué, the Ibadan Ecclesiastical Province stated ipso facto: “Our dear country Nigeria is fast becoming a hostile killing field. The ship of the nation is foundering under the weight of pervasive insecurity, economic hardship due to hyperinflation, and the collapse of the naira, cybercrime, high cost of food, lackadaisical governance, and widespread corruption.”
Also, the Lagos Ecclesiastical Province stated: “We sympathise with all victims of insecurity: The ongoing slaughter of people in their villages that became notorious since the killings on Christmas eve in Plateau State, in southern Kaduna among others; the activities of kidnappers in Federal Capital Territory; the unknown gunmen in South-east and so-called bandits in north etc. We pray God to grant eternal rest to the dead, healing to the injured and restoration to the displaced.”
The group, however, condemned the outcome of the Anglican Communion Conference, describing it as not only insensitive to the current chaotic situation in Nigeria, but morally corrupt and spiritually bankrupt as Christian leaders.
The group stated that the issue of contention arose from the statement issued by Standing Committee of Church of Nigeria, led by Primate Most Reverend Henry Ndukuba after its 5-day conference.
According to the group, the Standing Committee of Church of Nigeria had in a statement on the “State of the Nation”, stated that the administration of President Bola Tinubu is gradually putting in place its plans and policy drive while it called on the President and government to rise to the occasion of the challenging issues facing the nation.”
And on the vexatious issue of insecurity and mass killings, it stated “The Standing Committee meeting decries the constant attacks in Plateau, Zamfara, Ekiti, Ondo, Benue, parts of Imo and Anambra States and other parts of the country. It therefore calls on the government and statutory security agencies to rise to their responsibilities of protection of the lives and property of the citizenry, giving heed to the call for effective community policing.”
A.
-February 23, 2024 @ 12:45 GMT|
Tags: ICAC-GEN International Coalition against Christian Genocide in Nigeria Most Reverend Henry Ndukuba Nwankwo T. Nwaezeigwe
